Nanna gave a week long series of lectures on dhyana in Guntur ashram during 30-12-2001 to 03-01-2002. This chapter comprises of one lecture during this week.
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You will believe only facts. The Muslims ruled India for around 1000 years. During this period they committed many heinous acts. They destroyed so many temples. They demolished the Rama temple in Ayodhya and constructed a mosque there. They captured and converted many hindu women into Islam religion. That is how they ruled our country.
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Now let us see Mother's leela. One Muslim Emperor succeeded in getting a wife of his choice. One day she asked him ' I want to go to Brindavan and see Radha Devi. I wish to stay there for some time. Please permit me to leave.' He agreed. She came to Brindavan accompanied by some companions. As soon as she reached there, her heart melted. She was mesmerised by the infinite love there. 'I will not go back to Delhi. I don't want husband or family. I will die if I must leave this place. I will stay here only, whatever difficulties I may face.' She built a small palace and began her penance. The time given for her stay was over and she was due to go back. The emperor wondered why she did not return and came to Brindavan to see her. She did not see him or wish him. He waited silently.
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'Begum, why didn't you come back?' 'I could not leave the sweetness of this place. You cannot find it anywhere else. You wanted me to come back but I did not want to leave this place. I decided to stay back here. I will not step out of Brindavan. Some power that is creating bliss in my heart is hold me back. It is so wonderful here. I will not come back.' 'If this place is so blissful for you, why is it not so for me? Why is your god not so wonderful for me? Do you really want to experience the sweetness of my God? 'Yes.' 'Then I will give you that experience.' Can you even imagine such a conversation? She told her husband to close his eyes and prayed to Radhaji. 'Mother my husband is a tough and cruel person. He controls India under his feet. We had an argument. You granted me the sweetness which does not allow me to leave Brindavan. Please grant him also that sweetness.' Mother showed him some leela. Till today, nobody knows that leela. He became mad. 'You stay back here only. I will not ask you to come back. That will be a great sin. I am leaving my crown at your feet.' That is how she became Taj Begum (Queen with crown). He went back alone.
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Mother can easily accomplish such unbelievable leelas and s how Her power. This is happening even today. She takes somebody or something as Her instrument. Even a blade of grass can be used as Her instrument. That is divine will ! When Rama was sleeping in Sita's lap, suddenly blood gushed on his face. Sita told him that a demon Kakasura came as a crow and bit her breast. Rama threw a blade of grass instructing it to become his weapon. It chased the crow in all the worlds, finally pierced its eye and returned back to Rama. That is their power! When Rama has so much power, how powerful would Radhaji be? Unimaginable! Infinite power indeed. We are not interested in Her power, we want Her sweetness. If we taste that blissful sweetness once, we cannot leave Her.
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I sat down in Brindavan ashram with one desire. Dyana yoga is the highest. 'We must go higher-Vyaktha, Avyakhta and Para (manifested, unmanifested and Para worlds). How can we reach there? Which path must we follow?' When Arjuna questioned Krishna thus, he replied 'Arjuna, there is no other path except dhyana.' 'Tell me about dhyana precisely.' Some people do japa. 'Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare------- This has so many links. Your dhyana must be like a continuous chain without links; a straight flow without obstructions. When you do dhyana incessantly for some time, you will understand what state you will attain. Take Mother's name Radhe Radhe continuously for some time.
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I sat down in Brindavan ashram with one desire. Dyana yoga is the highest. 'We must go higher-Vyaktha, Avyakhta and Para (manifested, unmanifested and Para worlds). How can we reach there? Which path must we follow?' When Arjuna questioned Krishna thus, he replied 'Arjuna, there is no other path except dhyana.' 'Tell me about dhyana precisely.' Some people do japa. 'Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare------- This has so many links. Your dhyana must be like a continuous chain without links; a straight flow without obstructions. When you do dhyana incessantly for some time, you will understand what state you will attain. Take Mother's name Radhe Radhe continuously for some time.
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'Kaisoradhbhuta Dureenangachaveem .....mahadbhyo namah.' - Sri Radhasudhanidhi Verse
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This verse was not written by any human being. A divine voice was heard from the sky.
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One who takes Mother's name incessantly and contemplates only on Her will involuntarily become free of his karmas. He cannot drive them away; they will leave him on their own! This is the truth. Always remember Mother's words. This is Her assurance to us. Bhagwata dharma is the highest of all dharmas. You will lose interest in this dharma also. 'When Mother is with me, why do I need all the dharmas? Your life will be amazing, so full of rasa. How astonishing! You must attain such an astonishing life in this birth.
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Another verse by Hitaharivamsa describes the Mahatmas and rasikas who worship Mother only. They contemplate on Her and remain in Her dhyana day and night. Yet they have no external indications to say that they are rasika Mahatmas. They do not wear the signs of the conch and wheel not do they wear the tilak on their forehead. They do not even wear the sacred basil garland. They don't need such show. They have Mother in their heart. Their Guru is Mother. Their duty and aim is only doing dhyana on Her.
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Mother is our Guru. Do not have any other guru. When Krishna himself worships Radha then why should you have any other Guru? Rehman was a muslim boy, 8 years old. Who was his Guru? How did he reach Mother? So no other Guru but Mother. None other than Mother!
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Another verse from Sri Radhasudhanidi says - whether he follows the dharma mentioned in Vedas or not whether he wears basil garland or not; whether he puts saffron on his forehead or not; a Mahatma who worships Sri Radha and knows all Her secrets remains in Her bhava throughout. He cannot be understood by the people in this materialistic world.
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When Mother showed the Delhi Sultan Her leela, he became mad with blissful ecstasy. 'I also became mad for Her like you. I am laying my crown at your feet.' The Muslim Emperor who ruled India for 1000 years threw his crown near his wife's feet. She was a great devotee, Taj Begum who composed many songs.
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Mother has such powers that can make an undisputed king give up his crown. He is a great Emperor for us but not for Her. Krishna himself is not great for Her; then what do other matter? You will hear many leelas in these seven days. Later you will hear about my experiences. Who is the witness? I only am the witness for my experiences. Mother will give us a chance; From the moment we began dhyana yoga, an invisible power is with us. That invisible power is watching us. I believe that you did not come here by your will. You came because Mother brought you out from your family. You cannot come here until you are purified by Her.
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A sage was doing penance for a long time in a village named Medikonduru, near Guntur. He wished to go to Brindavan so he bought a train ticket and reached there. He stayed in Prabhudatta Brahmachari Ashram, near our ashram. Within 10 minutes after he settled down to sleep, somebody came near him and shouted ' this is not your place. Why did you come here? Go away. You must not stay here. Leave immediately.' He left in a hurry and reached Mathura. That person chased him there also. 'I came to check whether you left or not. Leave this place.' Later he came to me and narrated what happened. 'Mahatma, why did this happen? They said Brindavan is not my place. I did such severe penance for so many years. I do not have any attachments in this world. Then why did I face such a situation? I laughed. 'It is difficult to understand Mother's bhava. Come along with me. I will take you to Brindvan with me. You can sit beside me.' He agreed and also gave me money to book his ticket. I sent a message to him. 'We are leaving for Brindavan tomorrow morning. I will send a car to you. Please come here today.' He sent a letter to me. 'When I was packing my luggage to go to Brindavan my deity of worship came near me and said, 'our place is not Brindavan. Do not go there.' So I have dropped the plan of coming to Beindavan with you.' It is evident that coming to and leaving from Brindavan is not in our hands. Millionaires may not be able to come but some poppers find their way here! A millionaire for us is not so in Her sight. So, everything happens according to a divine power. This fact is proved in the Ramayana also.
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Kaikeyi looked after Rama like her own son, Bharata; in fact more than her own son. A mother who loved Rama so much became adamant that Bharata must be coroneted in place of Rama and Rama should leave the kingdom and live in the forest for 14 years. Bharata was aghast. 'You are so cruel. How could you do such a wretched act? I committed a grave sin; that is why I am born as your son. You sent Rama to the forest and committed an unpardonable sin. You made this kingdom like hell for me. You are not my mother. I don't even want to see your face.' Bharata left his mother. How did this happen? Why did the loving mother's mind change so drastically? How could she send Rama to the forest? How could she stop the coronation ceremony after all arrangements were made and the ceremony was to be performed in another 30 minutes! We must believe that some divine power acted there; some extra ordinary power which always looks after the world!
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Sri Sukha gave up his family and went away to do penance all alone. Nobody,not even Sage Vyasa's disciples went to that ashram. Sri Sukha was reading the Bhagawatam. One day he came to the chapter which describes Putana's episode. Putana was a cruel demon. She applied poison to her breasts with a plan to feed little Krishna and kill him. The Lord forgave even such a demon and granted her the same place as his mother Yashoda. They both were transported to the same world. What grace! Srisuka was surprised. 'I don't need to do penance in isolation. I will come back into the world.' So you must understand and believe that some divine power is protecting us and guiding us all the time.
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Now coming to the most important point. Who is Radha? In a circle, which is the beginning and end? Every point is the starting point, every point is the end point. Mother's form, Her leela, tattwa is like a huge circle. Where can you begin? The beginning is the end too! Her's is such a wonderful and great glory. We want to know about such a Mother! Radhe ! Radhe!
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I briefly described Taj Begum's story. It is strange that such a tough Sultan left his wife to her will. It is a stranger that he gave up his crown. These are unimaginable yet true incidents.
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Nanna spoke about Mother's descent to this world.
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Thousands of people gathered to witness Mother's arrival. The place was reverberating with instrumental music. King Vrishabhanu brought a palanquin for Her. All arrangements were made to receive Her. Till now no divine incarnation came down to earth from the sky. Only Mother came down like that. Kind Vrishabhanu welcomed Her with the ceremonial arthi. 'Mother, at last you came! I gave up my moksha also for you.' He bowed at Her feet and then carried Her. That is Mother's birth!
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Mother showed Her love for mankind by sending Her flute in the form of Sri Hitacharya. It is surprising how that boy came down to earth. When he was sleeping in the cradle, daily one verse was heard in the sky. In this way,he caused 270 verses which are known as Sri Radhasudhanidi. Astonishingly, these verses contain the essence of the Vedas; puranas and describe many qualities relating to the past, present and future. We also must acquire these qualities. What sadhana must we do? Mother showed us the past to follow and reach Her kingdom. Mother assured us, so we certainly have a chance.
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Chitra sakhi is one among Radhaji's dear eight sakhis (asta sakhis). Her life is strange and inspirational. It tells us how we can reach Mother. Her life is a beautiful and strange example for all the sadhakas. Today I shall tell you about her life. Yashoda dressed Krishna and decorated him one day. He asked his mother for his portrait. 'My child, you are so sweet. Everybody comes and carried you. They take you away to spend time with you. When you are present, why do they need your portrait?' 'Radhaji's brother wants my portrait. Will you make my portrait or not!' She agreed. They found out that a great yogini in Brindavan made good portraits. She was very skilful in her art but would not look at any man's face. Yashoda sent word to the yogini to meet her. 'I will not draw a picture of any man.' 'My son is just three years old. You cannot treat him as a man. So draw his picture.' Krishna stood before her for his portrait. 'When will you give my picture.' 'By my yogic power, I can give your picture tomorrow evening.' She left the place, reached her place and began to paint. The brush was moving but she was unable to draw even the nose or ear. She became helpless. 'I am unable to paint his picture. What happened to my yogic power? Why am I not able to draw?' She started weeping. Then she prayed to her deity Goddess Saraswati. 'Why are you weeping my child.' She narrated the story to her deity. 'My foolish child. You cannot draw this picture. Radhaji does not like you to draw this picture. When she does not like it you or I cannot do anything. Even thousands of Saraswathi's like me cannot go against Her will. So you must obtain Her blessings first. Lord Shiva wrote some verses in Her praise to obtain Her grace. He did penance with those verses. You also must chant those verses(Krupakatakshamala). They imply that a divine power which can absorb all the sorrow in the three worlds is present in Mother's nikunj kingdom.
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King Vrishabhanu took care of Mother like his child. In every temple in Brindavan, these verses are chanted daily compulsorily. We need Mother's grace. Our power is not enough. The Vedas also stress that you attain God by giving speeches or chanting God's name. Not even your intellect can fetch God. Even if you can explain the hidden truths of Vedas or any other scriptures, he will not appreciate your intelligence and grant his darshan. Listening to the words of Mahatmas cannot free us from our sins. Then how can we go to higher world? 'Yame vaisha Vrunathe thena labhyah'. When you attain Mother's grace and only when She decides, you will move higher, not till that time.
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Vivekananda gave his last message to the world in Chicago. 'God belongs to Bhavajagath. Without possessing bhava, none can attain him. He himself showers this bhava on us. Always keep in your heart that the attainment of God depends not on your japa or thapas, but only on His grace.' Vivekananada said tapa-penance are not enough to attain God. He believed at one time that human efforts would fetch results. With his LLB degree, he was in search of a job. He was unsuccessful everywhere. Finally he was ready to take up a peon job in order to feed h is hungry mother and sister. But he could not get that job also. People literally threw him out of the office. He returned home dejected and hungry as he had no food since two days. His mother came near him and gave him some food which she kept aside for him. He actually started crying. 'Oh god, You could not arrange to feed one jeeva in such a big Calcutta city. You could not protect us. Then where is God? He vented out his frustration and abused God. Mother said 'human efforts alone are not enough. You must realise that you can't achieve anything on your own. You underestimate this fact. That is why I wanted you to clearly understand this point.'
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So not only human efforts but penance is also essential. Without penance man cannot move up. Brahma Deva did not know his origin. He moved all the three worlds for his father but could not find him. He heard a voice in the sky, 'tapa, tapa'. This is the first lesson of Bhagawata. Human effort or penance? This argument has been going on since ages. The fact remains that human effort cannot fructify without penance. They must complement each other. You must do efforts along with penance. This is what I insist upon and also what Vivekananda implied.
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Your efforts - japa and tapa are also not enough. The primary goal of your penance is to attain divine grace. A man who attains divine grace can do anything. He can accomplish tasks beyond human capacity by Gods grace. Mother showed this in my own life. I had one desire. The Gita mentions that dhyana yoga is the highest. I wish I could construct a building with rooms exclusively for dhyana. I will make all arrangements for their stay and food. In this way, by the end of kaliyuga, every human being must do dhyana.' I have no money. I don't ask anybody for money. Mother arranged everything. She made this Dhyanan yoga kuteer.
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After explaining about his noble wish and how Mother fulfilled it by creating all facilities for dhyana yoga, he reverted back to the story of Chitra sakhi.
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She was unable to draw the portrait even after three days. When even the fourth day passed, Yashoda asked her 'You promised to give my child's portrait in one day. Why did you delay so much? Chitralekha prayed to Goddess Saraswathi and the Goddess gave her Radha mantra. Do this mantra and attain Mother's grace. Then you will get some powers. ' she did severe penance and attained Mother's grace and powers were granted by Her. She was able to draw little Krishna's portrait and give it to Yashoda. Mother called her Chitra sakhi and included her into her sakhi clan. Chitralekha is one of the eight sakhis closest to Radhaji. This incident clearly shows that our power, our intellect, our efforts, our penance is not enough. Mother's grace is inevitable.
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Nanna continued his speech on dhyana yoga the next day.
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You must remember two points. Why should we do dhyana? Needless to say, we must maintain a link with divine light. The divine is formless. It is not possible to establish a link with the formless divine though the form. The Vedas stand testimony for this. 'Satyam tapas, mounam tapas.' Truth is penance; silence is penance. Our final goal is formlessness. We can reach there only through penance in silence. Only a silent man can reach the formless, but not a speaking man! You must maintain silence to concentrate on any aspect. You will become a muni in silence state only. That is very difficult but we must practise and make it a habit. The form is dangerous.
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When a mother weeps for her dead son, you must try to make her forget him. Then only she will stop crying. The more she thinks about him, the more she will weep. We must look away from the form; we must attain the state of silence. We must practise silence. The silence world wants silence; the materialistic world wants sounds. Prakriti is made up of name and form. The world above is beyond name and form. Name, form, senses of sight, touch, smell, sound and taste-all these constitute prakriti. The more you contemplate on prakriti, the steeper your downfall! You cannot move higher. Jada Bharata contemplated on the little deer, an object of prakriti with name and form so much that he was born as a deer. He could not go higher. So name and form are obstructions to the formless tattwa. You must fact it some day or other.
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That is why you must do penance. Our ancestors went to Himalayas to do penance. Lord Narayana also did such severe penance. He told his consort, Goddess Lakshimi 'Rama, you represent the form. So you are an obstruction for my penance. I must reach Mother, who is formless. Please leave from my heart.' She moved from his path and surrounded him the form of berry bushes. Lakshmi Devi became berry bushes and thus formless. This is a very peculiar logic. Your goal is formless. This is a very peculiar logic. Your goal is formless. The obstacles in your way are name and form. That is why a saint gives up his family because it is this form that prevents him from going higher.
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Formlessness is difficult but you must practise it. Our original nature was formless. We got this form only later. Mamaivamso jeevaloke jeevabhootha....' We are parts of the Lord. So we are originally formless. You are not his body with limbs and organs. You are consciousness. This has no form. So formlessness is not your enemy. Your nature is still formless. This form is appended artificially. But your original soul is formless. You are the soul; you are formless. That is your original nature. This is what the Vedas and the great sages taught us.
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Your highest goal is formlessness. Your soul is formless. Your form is formless; your natural state is formless. You forgot this fact and came into this world with this artificial form. It is unusual. Thinking that you are this name and form is not natural. The fact that you are the athma, the soul which is formless is only natural. Your original nature is only formless. The unnatural name and form came in between. You got entangled in them and began to identify with them. As this continues for many births, it is now difficult for you to give up this identity with a name and form.
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As long as you do not give up this identity, you cannot worship the formless. Unless you worship the formless, you cannot go higher. This is the logic. You formed some habits with this form. So it is difficult in the beginning. But gradually you will be able to meditate on the formless and slowly move higher. Some people chant 'Om because it has no form or sound. But this cannot take you to formlessness. This is the real point. You must go up and reach Mother some birth. She is formless. She makes Her presence in the formless nature. One person cam and spent money to convert this room to AC. Why did he do so? It was not his idea. He was inspired by a formless power and got this thought. Mother's formlessness is a blessing indeed! She is present here, there and everywhere.
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People who are not aware are afraid of formlessness. Let me give you an example. My brother in law and I were travelling one day. On the way, we stopped at an inn and slept on the floor near the entrance. A villager came and asked why we slept there. Didn't you find any other place in this village so spend the night? Recently three murders took place here and those ghosts are still moving about. Why are you sleeping here? After hearing this, my brother in law was very scared and could not sleep. 'Did you see anything?' 'No, but I am afraid.' Listen carefully. Why are you afraid of ghosts? You are not familiar with the formless; it came suddenly. That is why you are afraid. It is against your habits, against your unnatural form; that is why you are afraid.
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Do not forget that your nature is different; your habit is different. By nature, you are formless. By habit you are the form. Someday, original nature will win over the habit. That is logical. The rishis also followed this logic. I listened to them and worshipped the formless. From when I realised the formless, I became powerful. You must realise formlessness in order to understand this tattwa and attain these powers. When you get used to contemplating on the formless one, your heart will be filled with love and you will shed tears of love.
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Nanna thus described jeeva's original nature and explained how he became attached to the form and name. He forgot that he was once a part of the Lord. That is his downfall. One who desires to reach God must give up the form and incessantly meditate on the formless and lustrous Mother. 'I got used to formlessness with great difficulty. From that time, athmic powers began to shine in me.' Thus Nanna gave his own life as an example for us to follow. He taught us to be passive towards the world and have attachment only towards Mother. Our loving Nanna, the Rasikacharya is our guru, our God, our dearest sakhi.
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'Mother Your pious vow is to uplift all the jeevas and draw them towards you with love and affection.'
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